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The researchers traced the path of the carbon by replacing the normal carbon dioxide in the air around the plants with a version made with C-13, a natural, non-radioactive form of carbon that is slightly heavier than the usual kind. Within hours, microbes in the roots were feeding on sugars laden with C-13 and using it to build their own cells.
The newly-made molecules of DNA and RNA produced by the microbes could be separated from pre-existing ones because the C13 made them heavier. DNA and RNA are large molecules that carry genetic information about the organisms that made them, so it was possible to identify the microbes that made those heavy molecules. These were the ‘greedy’ ones that were consuming the largest share of the sugars provided by the plant.
Professor Young said: "There are rich communities of microbes growing in or around the roots of all plants growing in normal soil. Most do no harm to the plant, and some are very beneficial to it. We looked at two sorts of microbe: bacteria and mycorrhizal fungi."
The researchers found a high diversity of both types of microbe inside the roots of grass or clover plants growing in a pasture, but the ‘heavy’ label revealed that some of these were growing much more actively than others.
Professor Young added: "It is these active organisms that are important because they are turning sugar back into carbon dioxide, which is released into the atmosphere. We were astonished at the wide variety of active bacteria that we discovered. Many of them had not been seen in plant roots before, and we have no idea how they may affect plant growth."
The role of mycorrhizal fungi is better known.
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Hungry Microbes Share Out The Carbon In The Roots Of Plants
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University of York (2007, October 21). Hungry Microbes Share Out The Carbon In The Roots Of Plants. ScienceDaily. Retrieved November 3, 2007, from
http://www.sciencedaily.com* /releases/2007/10/071018123523.htm
